Community prevention efforts to reduce the spread of AIDS associated with intravenous drug abuse

Drug abusers currently represent almost 30% of AIDS cases reported to the Centers for Disease Control. Intravenous drug abusers have been recognized as a major vector for the spread of HIV to the general public. Considering the high levels of AIDS risk behaviors among intravenous drug abusers, prevention efforts to reduce risk are a priority. Since community prevention approaches have been found effective with other target populations, this article considers community prevention as an AIDS reduction strategy. Consensus recommendations developed by a panel of researchers and practitioners who met at the National Institute on Drug Abuse in 1988 are presented. Specific recommendations for community prevention with intravenous drug abusers and their sex partners are introduced along with suggested research initiatives.